AFC Notes: Talanoa Hufanga, Rashee Rice, Broncos, Chiefs, Raiders

Broncos

Broncos S Talanoa Hufanga is excited to begin a new chapter of his career in Denver and is looking forward to a fresh start.

“You have to humble yourself each and every year, because it’s a clean slate regardless if you’ve been there or not,” Hufanga said, via the team’s website. “I’ve been to a Super Bowl and I’ve been to NFC Championships. That has nothing to do with me being here. I have to come in here and earn the respect from my teammates first and foremost. I have to go out there and show them that I am willing to work and show them things that I have seen in the playoffs that is different than the regular season [and things that I have] seen in the Super Bowl that are different than the regular season. But at the end of the day, we have to go through that journey together. That’s going to be something that is exciting — that we have each other’s backs and we go out there and compete.”

Broncos HC Sean Payton explained what he sees in Hufanga and how he thinks he can help take the defense to a new level.

“Well, he’s a great communicator, he’s super intelligent, his experience and there is a toughness about the way he plays,” Payton said. “Sometimes you can be a second responder [and] sometimes a first responder, and he appears first a lot on-screen. There’s a style to how he plays. … Because he’s so physical and so quick to support, he’s had a handful of injuries, but there’s a toughness to his game.”

Chiefs

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes said that WR Rashee Rice has no injury limitations and looks like he did as a rookie when he was a difference maker for the team in his first season.

“He’s out there playing, he’s making plays on the football field,” Mahomes said. “He’s explosive; he looks fast. You saw the start of last season. I think he can be one of the best receivers in the league.”

Raiders

Raiders DB Jakorian Bennett, who was one of the team’s starters at outside corner last year before a season-ending injury, is working his way back into the fold.

“His biggest issue is that he is coming off the injury, so kind of a bit of a slow start coming off the injury,” Raiders DB coach Marcus Robertson said via Raiders Wire. “But he’s stepping up, he’s doing well. Just working with the techniques and things of that nature. Pete Carroll’s defense, he’s got a certain technique for his corners, to be able to stay on top in the cover-three. So, just kind of trying to master their craft in that regard. And it’s going to take some time, but he’s working his butt off.”